This invention relates to devices used to secure a patient to an operating table and, more particularly, to a restraining garment used to prevent a patient from sliding on an operating table tilted to facilitate the operation.
In many surgeries, it is desirable to have the patient's head elevated above the feet. Examples of such surgeries are various types of stomach surgery, duodenal surgery, colon resection, splenectomy, and Nissen fundoplication. Many of the mentioned surgeries may be performed using the laparoscopic method, which entails making small incisions in a patient's abdomen for the insertion of a fiber optic tube and long-handled laparoscopic instruments. An impediment to successful surgeries using laparoscopic methods, particularly in the upper abdomen, is that abdominal contents, such as the folds of the intestines, tend to get in the way. Tilting of the operating table to position the patient's head well above the feet is particularly helpful in minimizing these visual obstructions.
The problem of tilting an operating table to an angle with the horizontal sufficient to avoid the aforementioned visual obstructions is that the cohesion between the patient and the operating table is not sufficient to prevent the patient from sliding down the table. The prior art, while replete with medical devices for securing patients to various objects such as beds, stretchers, wheel chairs, and operating tables, has not focussed to any great extent on this problem. The prior art restraints or securing devices range from belts, straps and harnesses to garments. U.S. Pat. No. 5,211,186 issued to Shoemaker is typical of those patents describing personnel immobilizing straps and belts. Other patents directed to similar inventions are U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,222 to Boomgarten et. al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,744,354 to Triunfol, U.S. Pat. No. 4,524,768 to Serrao, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,055 to O'Connor. These patents all disclose constructions designed primarily to inhibit thrashing movements of the patients and are too cumbersome and/or restrictive for surgical applications.
One U.S. Pat. No. 5,400,803 to Vines discloses a structure for supporting a supine patient on a tilted surface that comprises a diaper shaped body supporting member that includes a torso portion, a crotch portion and a base sheet. It is clear that the torso portion would cover the lower anterior abdomen and anterior pelvis, both common sites of surgery or surgical field preparation. Surgical applications would apparently be limited to the upper two-thirds of the torso. Moreover, the crotch portion would preclude obstetrical applications or easy usage of bladder catheters.
From the above, it can be seen that the prior art patents have not adequately addressed the problems associated with significantly tilted surgical tables. It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide for a surgical restraining garment which secures the pelvis and upper thighs to an operating table in such a way as to prevent sliding of the patient's torso when the table is tilted
Another object of the present invention is to provide a surgical restraining garment which is simple in structure and easy to use, thus minimizing pre-operative set-up time.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a surgical restraining garment which does not wrap around the anterior chest, abdomen, or anterior pelvis, so as to provide operating personnel unobstructed access to these areas.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a surgical restraining garment which does not cover the external genitalia, so as to provide operating personnel unobstructed access for possible gynecologic or obstetrical applications or usage of a bladder catheter.